Naruto was still deep asleep.
Sasuke's sudden shout dragged him straight out of his pleasant dream.
What puzzled Naruto, though, was that sleeping until school let out usually left him refreshed. Why did he still feel sleep-deprived today, even with everyone else in the classroom gone?
Opening his eyes groggily, Naruto saw Sasuke's delicate, smiling face looking at him with ill intent.
"What're you staring at? School's over. Let's hurry up and get some food!"
Seeing that not a single other person remained in the classroom, Naruto grabbed Sasuke's hand and dashed outside.
"Naruto, let go. It'll look bad if someone sees us," Sasuke said, trying desperately to pull free.
"Quit fussing. I'm making you braised pork and spicy chicken today." Then Naruto added, "Consider it repayment for washing my clothes."
"Hmph. At least you know how to show some gratitude."
Once he heard Naruto offer to make him something called spicy chicken, Sasuke's mind filled with the name and fantasies about the dish. He completely forgot that school wasn't over yet-it was only the third period.
By the time Sasuke came to his senses, however, the two of them had already returned to Naruto's place, loaded down with bags of ingredients.
Only after carrying all those ingredients into Naruto's home and setting them down did Sasuke snap out of it.
"Ah... uh..."
Seeing Sasuke's shocked expression, Naruto asked while getting the cooking utensils ready, "What's got you so worked up?"
"Uh, well... um... I think we left during the third period."
Naruto looked bewildered. "What? What was that? I've suddenly gone deaf. I can't hear a word you're saying."
Sasuke said, "Uh... me too."
The two exchanged knowing smiles, and neither pursued the matter any further.
"Oh, right, Naruto. Why did you buy so many ingredients this time?" Sasuke